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'Ashâb (Bedouin Axemen)
These light infantry are best deployed as fast-moving flankers, but will not hold up well in a straight fight against better-armoured infantry. Description The Bedouins have a bad reputation as warriors and tend to be more suited and experienced with small scale raids than with holding the line. They lack armour and heavy shields not only because of the scarcity of quality equipment, but the desert climate is unforgiving to soldiers burdened by weight and thick armour. Nor is it much of an advantage in their typical quick raids, ambushes and hit and run tactics, as stamina and speed is of much greater use. Hence, they are of limited use holding the line in set piece battles, but they can be effective as flankers as they are quick to move in and out of dangerous situations and are superior at dealing out damage than absorbing it. Their popular use of the axe, not merely cheaper to produce, also provides them with a small edge against the heavier troops of their settled neighbours living beyond the edges of the desert. Thus though they are looked down up on they can be a useful and cheap addition to any army lacking a bit off an offensive punch. When these soldiers were mentioned by ancient authors be them Roman or Sabaean, the Bedouins were seen as unreliable and untrustworthy soldiers. However they were common in the armies of the latter either as support from Bedouin tribes recognising the Sabaean malk's supremacy or as mercenaries. This might be explained by the lack of manpower any of the South Arabian states faced. While they preferred Ethiopian mercenaries, the Bedouin tribes were a cheaper and more accessible source. These men were likely also part of the armies of the Nabataeans for which we have fewer sources, yet are most famous for their ineffective attacks on the Roman army of Gallus, who undertook a campaign to conquer Southern Arabia during Augustus reign. Strabo describes them as 'not very good warriors...rather being hucksters and merchants' and 'they used their weapons in an inexperienced manner, being utterly unfit for war, using bows and spears and swords and slings, though most of them used a double-edged axe'. Usage Highly cheap axemen, these men are best used to attacking the flanks or the rear of an enemy while your spearmen or swordsmen hold the enemy in place. They are also quite effective against heavily armored infantry due to their armor-piercing axes. They will crumple and lose many men when under direct attack from much stronger units, a strong cavalry charge or being pelted with ranged attacks due to their utterly poor defensive stats. They can be used as siege units but only if the enemy unit protecting the walls are weak archers, skirmishers, or slingers as they will be easily be repeled by even a lowly spearmen. Still, they are the only effective melee infantry the arabian factions will ever have until the arrival of much stronger units and they can be used to increase the number of units in an army. Category:Units Category:Units available only in EB2 Category:Arche Seleukeia Category:Ptolemaioi Category:Nabatu Category:Saba